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In YAHOO News' "The Fire Line" NFFE Members Matt Guzman and Jeremy Blake Discuss Life as Wildland firefighters (VIDEO)

Wednesday, May 15, 2019

(National Federation of Federal Employees)

Wildland firefighters Matt Guzman
and Jeremy Blake of NFFE Local 2023 were
interviewed recently and featured in a video
for Yahoo News, highlighting the work that the
U.S. Forest Service is doing to prepare for the
2019 fire season which is now
underway. Last year was the
deadliest fire season in California’s history
claiming the lives of more than 100 people, and
some experts fear this year may be
worse.

As
Firefighters Guzman and Blake report in the
video, wildland firefighters are not your
typical firefighters who show up when you dial
911. Wildland firefighters are federal
employees tasked with protecting and
maintaining federal lands before, during, and
after each fire season. A great deal of
planning and preparation is required for each
fire season, and no two years are identical as
weather patterns and other environmental
factors shift the hazards from one region to
another across the
country.

“Wildfire
season in the United States usually starts late
April and goes until the end of October. I’d
say within the last five or six years, it seems
like fire season is 365 days a year,” stated
Firefighter Guzman. “Unfortunately, in the
past decade or so, it seems like the fires are
getting much bigger, faster. They become harder
to manage,” Firefighter Blake
added.

“We are
exceptionally proud of our Forest Service
wildland firefighters,” stated NFFE National
President Randy Erwin in response to the
video. “Wildland firefighters never
seem to get enough credit for what they do and
for the dangers they face because most of their
work is in hard to reach places, away from the
general public and the cameras.
Nevertheless, they are a critical part of
saving lives and property every
year.”

The US Forest
Service employees about 30,000 employees,
including 10,000 wildland
firefighters.

Watch
the clip below to hear from Guzman and Blake
and other FS Firefighters about the work they
do each day to maintain our country’s federal
land and protect citizens who live near forests
and other fire prone areas.